For the effort conscious
After a long time, I had the sudden impulse to do bit of "fancy" cooking. I thought I will take some effort and you know make a nice dinner! But alas I was disappointed on one count...."effort". This is the least effort I have put in a so called fancy dinner in a long time. 50 mins that is it...and dinner was served!
My fancy dinner had me planning for Burnt chilli egg fried rice and chilli chicken. The recipe I will share with you today, is the easiest and in fact a very healthy version. I hardly used any oil ( none of the batter dipped frying) which also means....less effort!
So here it goes...sorry I don't have any pictures that are worth sharing. Just the one to show the final product
The chilli chicken!
Ingredients:
Chicken breasts - 2 (diced in one inch squares)
Capsicum - Half a medium sized one (diced in one inch squares)
Onion - 1 medium sized one (diced in once inch squares)
Ginger-garlic paste - 2 table spoons
Spring Onions - Just the stems, chopped
Celery: Finely chopped
Green Chillies - 4-5 slit in the middle
Soya Sauce - 1 1/2 - 2 tablespoons (depending on if you have dark soy or light)
Salt - to taste
Sugar - Just a pinch
Cornflour- 2 teaspoon
Ajinomoto - This is optional. As most of you know this is not the best thing for health, so skip if you can or add just a pinch. But honestly adding it does give you that dhaba wala fried rice feel!
Method:
1. Heat oil in a pan, and when it is really hot add in the ginger garlic paste and run for your life!! Just kidding! The ginger garlic paste is going to splutter quite a bit, so be careful and reduce the flame and let it brown. Try and brave the splutters and stir the paste in the oil.
2. When you see that the paste has started turning golden, add in the washed and diced chicken pieces. Add in the salt and the slit green chillies. This is the trick to making your chicken full of flavour, cooking it with green chillies and the ginger garlic paste. You won't miss the batter fried chicken at all.
3. Cover with lid and cook for about 3 mins.
4. Once you see the chicken is more or less drying add in the capsicum, soy sauce and stir away.
5. Wait for about 2 mins for the capsicum to cook and add in the onions. Add a little bit of water say like half a cup, cover with a lid and let it cook.
6. Mix cornflour to half a cup of water and add to the pan. Add in the spring onions and celery too. The Ajinomoto too goes into it now.
This will thicken the gravy. Depending on how much gravy you want to keep increase the quantity of water. I prefer mine in a semi gravy state and so the above measurements are good for me.
Please note, that gravies with thickening agents like cornflour, further thicken as they cool down. So leave it a little extra watery, so as to give some cooling down space!
Basically you are done with the chilli chicken. That is it! It is that simple!
For the fried rice:
Ingredients:
Rice: Long grained about a cup and half, boiled
Beans: 5-6 thinly chopped
Carrots - half a cup, thinly chopped
Capsicum - half a cup, thinly chopped
Cabbage - hald a cup, thinly chopped
Egg: 2 nos
Spring Onions: Just the stems, chopped
Celery: Chopped
Soy Sauce - I really don't know how to give a measurement for this. my policy is to shake it into the wok and mix the rice in, till I get a light brown colour.
Dried Red chilli - 3-4
Salt
Start with heating oil in a wok, add in the red chillies, let it burn. Once you think you have burnt it enough, add in the beans, saute for about 2 mins, add in the capsicum, continue with the saute, add in carrots, saute, cabbage saute. Once all of the above items have been cooked. Turn of flame and remove to another bowl
Add more oil to the wok, and scramble the eggs in them. You can add more eggs if you like 'em. Once done add in the veggies and pour in the soy sauce and salt and ajinomoto. Also add celery and spring onions.
Next step adding the rice and mixing. While mixing in the rice, please treat it well. Gently fold it in, don't stab at it or try hurrying up the process. The rice will break and you will end up with a mess. This one part requires patience and it will pay.
Once the rice is mixed, please taste it and add whatever else you need, like more soy more celery more salt, etc!
And your dinner is served!
Some tips to save time
1. First cook your rice and while your rice is cooking cut the veggies.
2. When the veggies are getting cooked, chop your spring onions and celery
3. While chicken is getting cooked slowly stir in your veggies with rice.
And the best part about Chinese cooking is, you can add things later. Even if you forget the steps, all you need is a high flame and some guts to just add it into the meal when you remember! :P
My fancy dinner had me planning for Burnt chilli egg fried rice and chilli chicken. The recipe I will share with you today, is the easiest and in fact a very healthy version. I hardly used any oil ( none of the batter dipped frying) which also means....less effort!
So here it goes...sorry I don't have any pictures that are worth sharing. Just the one to show the final product
The chilli chicken!
Ingredients:
Chicken breasts - 2 (diced in one inch squares)
Capsicum - Half a medium sized one (diced in one inch squares)
Onion - 1 medium sized one (diced in once inch squares)
Ginger-garlic paste - 2 table spoons
Spring Onions - Just the stems, chopped
Celery: Finely chopped
Green Chillies - 4-5 slit in the middle
Soya Sauce - 1 1/2 - 2 tablespoons (depending on if you have dark soy or light)
Salt - to taste
Sugar - Just a pinch
Cornflour- 2 teaspoon
Ajinomoto - This is optional. As most of you know this is not the best thing for health, so skip if you can or add just a pinch. But honestly adding it does give you that dhaba wala fried rice feel!
Method:
1. Heat oil in a pan, and when it is really hot add in the ginger garlic paste and run for your life!! Just kidding! The ginger garlic paste is going to splutter quite a bit, so be careful and reduce the flame and let it brown. Try and brave the splutters and stir the paste in the oil.
2. When you see that the paste has started turning golden, add in the washed and diced chicken pieces. Add in the salt and the slit green chillies. This is the trick to making your chicken full of flavour, cooking it with green chillies and the ginger garlic paste. You won't miss the batter fried chicken at all.
3. Cover with lid and cook for about 3 mins.
4. Once you see the chicken is more or less drying add in the capsicum, soy sauce and stir away.
5. Wait for about 2 mins for the capsicum to cook and add in the onions. Add a little bit of water say like half a cup, cover with a lid and let it cook.
6. Mix cornflour to half a cup of water and add to the pan. Add in the spring onions and celery too. The Ajinomoto too goes into it now.
This will thicken the gravy. Depending on how much gravy you want to keep increase the quantity of water. I prefer mine in a semi gravy state and so the above measurements are good for me.
Please note, that gravies with thickening agents like cornflour, further thicken as they cool down. So leave it a little extra watery, so as to give some cooling down space!
Basically you are done with the chilli chicken. That is it! It is that simple!
For the fried rice:
Ingredients:
Rice: Long grained about a cup and half, boiled
Beans: 5-6 thinly chopped
Carrots - half a cup, thinly chopped
Capsicum - half a cup, thinly chopped
Cabbage - hald a cup, thinly chopped
Egg: 2 nos
Spring Onions: Just the stems, chopped
Celery: Chopped
Soy Sauce - I really don't know how to give a measurement for this. my policy is to shake it into the wok and mix the rice in, till I get a light brown colour.
Dried Red chilli - 3-4
Salt
Start with heating oil in a wok, add in the red chillies, let it burn. Once you think you have burnt it enough, add in the beans, saute for about 2 mins, add in the capsicum, continue with the saute, add in carrots, saute, cabbage saute. Once all of the above items have been cooked. Turn of flame and remove to another bowl
Add more oil to the wok, and scramble the eggs in them. You can add more eggs if you like 'em. Once done add in the veggies and pour in the soy sauce and salt and ajinomoto. Also add celery and spring onions.
Next step adding the rice and mixing. While mixing in the rice, please treat it well. Gently fold it in, don't stab at it or try hurrying up the process. The rice will break and you will end up with a mess. This one part requires patience and it will pay.
Once the rice is mixed, please taste it and add whatever else you need, like more soy more celery more salt, etc!
And your dinner is served!
Some tips to save time
1. First cook your rice and while your rice is cooking cut the veggies.
2. When the veggies are getting cooked, chop your spring onions and celery
3. While chicken is getting cooked slowly stir in your veggies with rice.
And the best part about Chinese cooking is, you can add things later. Even if you forget the steps, all you need is a high flame and some guts to just add it into the meal when you remember! :P
Nice...I am generally bad at cooking and sucks at chinese...So come prepared to make this item when u visit Bangalore next...Please come..I need a tutor
ReplyDeleteSure sis! Thy wish is my command. Will plan a trip on some weekend. :)
ReplyDelete